Turkey burgers are regularly on our weekly dinner menu. I often skip the grill and instead pan-fry them on my stove in a cast iron skillet. Over the years I have tried out countless different ingredient combinations. I love that turkey burgers are so easy to sneak veggies into and that the mild flavor of ground turkey is easy to flavor with any different combination of herbs and seasonings. One of my favorite ways to prepare turkey burgers is to make my recipe for Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach. I also top my turkey burgers with spinach with a pesto mayo sauce.
Ingredients for Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach
You only need 10 common ingredients to make these turkey burgers. The turkey burgers are also topped with a Pesto Mayo Sauce. If you choose to purchase your pesto from the grocery store then the pesto mayo sauce will only contain 2 simple ingredients – pesto + mayo!
Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach
- Bread crumbs (unseasoned)
- Dried oregano
- Salt
- Pepper
- Fresh parsley
- Diced onion
- Minced garlic
- 2 eggs
- Chopped fresh spinach
- 2 pounds ground turkey
Pesto Mayo Sauce
- Basil pesto
- Mayonnaise
How to Prepare Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach
Step 1: After gathering, chopping and dicing your ingredients, combine the bread crumbs, oregano, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Mix well to combine.
Step 2: Add the chopped fresh parsley, diced onion and minced garlic to the bowl. Mix well to combine.
Step 3: Add the chopped spinach and the two eggs to your mixing bowl. Mix well to combine.
Step 4: Mix the two pounds of ground turkey into the mixing bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Form the ground turkey mixture into approximately 12 baseball sized balls, flattened slightly into 1 inch thick burger patties. Transfer the burgers to a preheated and oiled skillet – like this one here. Reduce heat to low and cook for 8 minutes per side. Transfer the patties to an oven safe dish and cover with foil. Place the dish into your oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue cooking for 15 minutes. The additional cook time in the oven will ensure that the patties are cooked through.
Step 5: After your turkey burgers have finished cooking in the oven, or have reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, remove them from the oven and top with the Pesto Mayo Sauce. The pesto mayo sauce is made with equal parts pesto and mayo. I usually combine 1/4 cup pesto and 1/4 mayo and whisk to combine. You can make your pesto from scratch or purchase your favorite brand from the grocery store. My number 1 favorite grocery store pesto is DeLallo Simply Pesto® Sauce – Traditional Basil. It tastes exactly like homemade from scratch basil pesto! As an added bonus, it is shelf stable and can be stored in your pantry for months.
Can you make this recipe ahead of time?
Yes! My recipe for Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach is an excellent recipe to make ahead of time. In my experience the turkey burgers will keep well in the fridge for 3-4 days. To reheat I simply pop them in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. I would set the sauce aside in a different container and top the burgers with the sauce when you are ready to eat them. This is an excellent meal prep idea for a protein. These burgers can also be frozen. Again though, do not freeze them with the Pesto Mayo Sauce on top. Save the sauce for adding at time of eating.
What can you serve this recipe with?
Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach would be great along side my recipe for Mashed Potatoes with Cream Cheese or my Quick & Easy White Bean Salad with Feta.
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Healthy Turkey Burgers with Spinach
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 31 minutes
- Total Time: 41 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
Description
The turkey burgers will not only provide you with a healthy, low-fat, high-protein dinner option but they will also give you a small serving of green veggies!
Ingredients
Turkey Burgers
- 1/2 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/4 cup diced onion
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
- 2/3 cup chopped fresh spinach
- 2 eggs
- 2 pounds ground turkey
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Pesto Mayo Sauce
- 1/4 cup Basil Pesto – store bought or homemade
- 1/4 cup Mayonnaise – I prefer to use low-fat mayo
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl mix your bread crumbs, oregano, salt and pepper. Add in your fresh parsely, diced onion and minced garlic and mix well to combine. Next add in the chopped fresh spinach and the two eggs and mix well to combine.
- Add the two pounds of ground turkey to the mixing bowl and using your hands, gently mix the ground turkey with the rest of the ingredients in the mixing bowl. Be careful not to over mix.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place your skillet over medium heat and coat the pan with the 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Set aside an oven safe rectangular casserole dish and tin foil for later use.
- While your skillet is heating, form the ground turkey mixture into 12 equal, baseball sized balls. Flatten the balls into 1 inch thick patties.
- Begin cooking the turkey burger patties in the preheated skillet. Carefully place your patties into the skillet being careful not to overcrowd the pan. After placing the patties in the skillet reduce the heat to low and cook for 8 minutes. Flip the patties and cook for an additional 8 minutes. I can only fit 4 patties in my skillet at a time so when I cook this recipe I have to repeat this process 3 times.
- After cooking the patties in the skillet, place the patties in the oven safe casserole dish and cover the dish with tin foil. Place the dish in the oven and continue cooking in your preheated oven for an additional 15 minutes or until the patties reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- While the patties are finishing cooking in the oven you can make your Pesto Mayo Sauce. In a small bowl combine the basil pesto and the mayonnaise. Whisk together until fully combined.
- After the turkey burgers have finished cooking, remove them from the oven. When you are ready to serve, top your turkey burger with a dollop of pesto mayo. Serve over greens or on a bun.
- Category: dinner
- Method: pan-frying & baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: healthy turkey burgers with spinach, turkey burgers, pesto mayo sauce
